Many laser rangefinders have been designed and produced for both commercial and military applications. Military laser rangefinders typically use a Nd:YAG pulsed laser with a peak power of about 1 million watts and can measure range to a target up to more than 5 kilometers. More recent versions use Er:glass lasers which have similar performance but operate at an eyesafe wavelength of 1.5 microns. These systems meet military requirements in a 2 or 3 pound system, but may be too expensive for many commercial applications. These systems transmit a single, high peak power pulse of about 1 million watts and the range is determined by measuring the time elapsed between the laser pulse and the received light which is reflected the desired target. The determined range is then displayed digitally by a viewfinder.
There is now a requirement for lightweight, relative low cost, eyesafe laser rangefinders which will operate and determine a range of a target of at least 1000 meters. These requirements can be met with laser diodes which are low cost and more efficient.